Changpeng Zhao (CZ)

Who they are

Changpeng Zhao (CZ) is the founder of Binance — built it from a startup in July 2017 into the world's largest crypto exchange by volume, and wrote the book 'Freedom of Money' while serving a U.S. federal sentence.

Person

CZ joined Binance in July 2017 when it was a newly founded startup cryptocurrency exchange — he was its founder and first CEO, and ran it for six years through its rise to global dominance. Before Binance, he founded BijieTech in 2015, operating it through 2017. Earlier he worked at Fusion Systems, Bloomberg, and a company listed as Blockchain — a track record in financial data and trading infrastructure that directly informed what he built at Binance. He stepped down as Binance CEO in November 2023 as part of a $4.3 billion settlement with U.S. authorities over AML and sanctions violations. He has 2M+ Twitter followers and wrote the book 'Freedom of Money'; his public content covers cryptocurrency, blockchain, exchange technology, and crypto regulation. Possibly — with his CEO tenure formally ended and a U.S. legal chapter closed, he is in a post-operator phase, though his exact current role at Binance remains unclear from available signals.

Company

The most recent move: in May 2026 Binance launched SpaceX pre-IPO perpetual futures contracts, letting retail traders gain synthetic exposure to private companies before public listings — a signal of its 'financial super app' ambition. In December 2025, Yi He was appointed co-CEO of Binance, a meaningful leadership shift. Earlier in March 2025, Binance raised $2 billion in a Series C funding round, its largest to date, bringing total funding to $2.02 billion across 5 rounds since 2017. In early 2026, Binance.US separately raised over $200 million at a $4.5 billion valuation and appointed Stephen Gregory as CEO. The company is targeting 3 billion active users by 2030 while navigating a $4.3 billion U.S. settlement, ongoing investigations in France, the UK, and the EU, and a November 2025 lawsuit from families of October 7 attack victims alleging the platform helped transfer funds for Hamas and Hezbollah.

Market

Binance held a 36.5% global market share in Q1 2025 with $8.39 trillion in total trading volume — nearly double the combined spot-trading share of its top five competitors at certain points in 2025. Main rivals are Coinbase, Bybit, Bitget, Kraken, and OKX; Coinbase commands 65% of the U.S. market on the back of stronger regulatory compliance, the exact ground Binance has ceded by exiting U.S. and EU markets until compliance clarity emerges. The broader industry in 2025–2026 is defined by regulatory tightening and consolidation, with Binance's own compliance moves — including launching regulated gold and silver perpetual futures via an Abu Dhabi Global Market entity — raising the bar competitors must now match.

Network

Yi He· Co-CEO of Binance (appointed December 2025)
Stephen Gregory· CEO of Binance.US (appointed March 2026)

How they likely show up

Founded Binance in 2017 and ran it as CEO for six years through explosive growth → likely operates with a founder's sense of ownership and urgency, not a hired-manager's caution.
Previously founded BijieTech (2015–2017) before pivoting to Binance → comfortable killing a prior bet and rebuilding fast when the opportunity changes.
2M+ Twitter followers and authored a book on financial freedom → comfortable being a public face and using personal platform as a business asset.
LinkedIn posts cover real-time machine learning, crypto regulation, and business strategy — not just company announcements → engages with technical depth, not just narrative.
Stepped down as CEO amid a $4.3 billion U.S. regulatory settlement → has navigated high-stakes legal and reputational crises at scale; likely evaluates risk with that experience embedded.
Possibly — tenure shape marked 'mixed' in available signals, with roles at Bloomberg, Fusion Systems, and Blockchain before founding → the early career was iterative, not a straight line, suggesting comfort with reinvention.

Conversation tips

→ Reference 'Freedom of Money' specifically — he wrote it and will engage if you've read it rather than just heard the title.
→ He posts on LinkedIn about real-time machine learning and business strategy, not just crypto hype — match that level of technical and strategic specificity.
→ Don't frame Binance purely through its legal troubles; he's clearly still engaged in its long-term vision (3 billion users by 2030) — lead with the builder's angle.
→ He's spoken at Binance Blockchain Week — if you've attended or followed any of those sessions, reference a specific moment; it signals genuine engagement with his world.
→ Ask about the transition from operator to post-CEO rather than glossing over the November 2023 change — it's the defining arc of the last few years and he'll likely have a considered view.

Toolbox

Openers

Open on the SpaceX pre-IPO perpetual futures launch in May 2026 — it's the freshest product move and a pointed signal about where Binance is taking the 'financial super app' thesis.
Bring up 'Freedom of Money' — he authored it, it's a stated part of his public identity, and asking what he wanted readers to walk away with is a fast way into his first-principles thinking on crypto.
Reference the BijieTech-to-Binance pivot — he founded and ran BijieTech from 2015 to 2017, then immediately built Binance; that rapid conviction switch is worth asking about on its own terms.

Discovery questions

When you founded Binance in 2017 with exchange technology experience from BijieTech and Bloomberg, what did you know about exchange infrastructure that the market hadn't priced in yet?
Binance is targeting 3 billion users by 2030 while simultaneously exiting the U.S. and EU markets pending regulatory clarity — how do you think about that tension between scale ambition and geographic retreat?
The SpaceX pre-IPO perpetual futures launch suggests Binance wants to blur the line between crypto and traditional capital markets — is the 'financial super app' framing a product strategy or a regulatory positioning move?

Avoid

Don't lead with the $4.3 billion settlement or the November 2023 departure as a gotcha — he's publicly acknowledged the legal chapter and will disengage if it feels like a cross-examination rather than a conversation.

Make it yours